Chapter 1

A slap resounded across the field. InuYasha stood with his head to the side, a red hand print visible against his cheek. Kagome shook with fury and with the unshed tears gathering, she stormed to the old well.

Sango and Miroku watched as their friend disappeared over the side of the well. Miroku turned to where InuYasha was standing only to find him gone.

"I wonder how long she will be gone this time."

Miroku shook his head at Sango's musing. "One can never be certain with those two. However, this is the first time she has slapped him."

Sango sighed. "You make a good point. I hope she comes back soon."


Kagome slammed the door to her room, ignoring her mother's questions and her brother's shout of surprise as she stormed past them. Locking her door and flinging herself onto her bed, she finally let out the tears that had gathered in the Feudal Era.

"That stupid jerk! I can't believe he said that to me! He knows that I can't do all the things that Kikyou used to do."

Sobbing into her pillow, Kagome didn't notice the sound of her mother quietly walking away. Sighing, Kaiyo moved into the kitchen. Souta came up to her, placing a glass of water in front of her.

Kaiyo nodded her thanks and took a small sip of the refreshing liquid. "Can I tell her yet, Mom?"

"No. She is too upset, most likely over InuYasha. Give her some time, we will tell her eventually."

"But Mom," Souta began.

Kaiyo shook her head. "No. I don't want her to know yet."

Groaning, Souta conceded. "Ok. I won't tell her."

"Thanks honey. I love you," she said, kissing her son on his forehead.


"Kagome! Time to get up! We are going to your Aunt Suki's now!"

Kagome moaned and glanced at her clock. "Normal people shouldn't have to get up this early. InuYasha didn't even…"

She stopped that thought before it could go any further. She had just finished crying over him and it would do her no good to start up again. Sighing, she rolled out of bed and dressed in a warm pair of jeans and a sweatshirt.

It had been three days since they had the fight and she didn't have the strength to forgive him just yet. She couldn't fool herself for long, she knew herself too well. "I love him too much to let a silly little fight get in the way of our friendship. Even though he doesn't love me, I still can't stand to be apart from him for too long."

Walking into the kitchen, Kagome forced a small smile onto her face, grabbing the toast as it sprung out of the toaster. "Mom, make sure to leave that note in case InuYasha comes to look for me. I don't want him going out into the city when he finds me not here."

"Although, I doubt he will come looking for me. The last thing he would do is come to apologize…"

"Sure thing sweetie. Go get Souta and get yourselves into the car. We don't want to be late," Kaiyo said over her shoulder.

Kagome walked out of the kitchen and out into the courtyard. She found her younger brother by the Goshinboku, staring into its branches. "Hey Souta, time to get into the car!"

Souta jumped slightly at the sound of her voice, but recovered quickly and replied, "Okay sis! Be right there!"

He watched as Kagome made her way to their car. Sighing, he noted how she had lost the spring in her step and how she had a depressed air about her. "Hey InuYasha, I don't know if you can here me in the Feudal Era, but come get Kagome. Don't let her leave. If she gets into the car, she will never come back. She loves you. Please."

Turning away from the tree, he walked over to the car and climbed in beside his sister. "Hey Kagome?"

Kagome turned toward him confused. "Yea? What is it?"

Souta looked out his window, a blush settling over his cheeks. "I know you probably don't want to talk about this yet, but why did you leave to Feudal Era?"

"You guessed right. I don't want to talk about it yet. I will tell you when we get back, okay?" Kagome answered, looking out her own window now.

Nodding, Souta said, "Okay. Sorry I asked." Leaning over to Kagome, he wrapped his arms around her. "I love you Kags."

Kagome smiled. Wrapping her arms around Souta, she replied, "I love you too squirt."

Giggling as Souta punched her and pouted at the nickname, Kagome sighed and looked up at the Goshinboku. "I hope you stay in the Feudal Era while I'm gone InuYasha. I don't want you to worry too much about your fragile 'shard detector.'"


Kagome yawned as she opened her eyes. Rubbing the side of her face that had been pressed up against the cold glass window, she looked around her. Souta was asleep on his side of the car, Grandpa was looking at a piece of paper which Kagome figured to be directions of some sort, and her mom was driving.

"Hey Mom? Shouldn't we have been at Aunt Suki's house by now?" Kagome asked, smothering another yawn with her right hand.

Kaiyo glanced back at her daughter, sighing. "Well, I guess this would be as good a time as any to tell you."

Kagome narrowed her eyes. "Tell me what?"

"We aren't going to Aunt Suki's house. We are moving to Osaka. We sold the house and your grandfather sealed up the well. It is time for you to start facing reality again and to focus on your schooling instead of a silly little hunt for a broken jewel."

"What? How can you say that?" Kagome leaned forward as far as she could with the seatbelt restraining her. "The search isn't just a 'silly little hunt'! It is really important that we find all the jewel shards! You didn't even give me a chance to tell InuYasha or the others!"

Kaiyo shushed her. "Stop it. You know as well as I do that if we had told you, you would have come back saying that you would be staying in the Feudal Era. You basically live there now; I have no idea who you are anymore!"

Slamming her fist against her window, Kagome said, "That is not your decision to make! I have a major part in the search for the jewel. Without me, their whole world will have to surrender to Naraku. You can't just take me away!"

"Well, I have. So don't complain anymore. I have made my decision as a mother to take care of my daughter and what is best for you right now is to finish high school. It is not your responsibility to take care of the Sacred Jewel and I will not have you endangering your life anymore."

Kagome sat back and stared out her window. The rolling country met her gaze and she felt tears gathering as she realized that she would not be able to see InuYasha or Sango or Miroku ever again. "They were my second family. How can I live without them?"

Souta sat still, his eyes remaining closed. He didn't want to look at his sister, knowing that she would be heartbroken at learning the truth. He didn't know how his mom could be so cold-hearted when it came to Kagome and her quest. Even though he was only 12, he still knew the importance of his sister's role.

Glancing out his window, the darkness settling in on the country, he realized that this would be a rough time for Kagome. He silently vowed to make sure that she had the best life a teenage girl her age could have.


Pacing in front of the well, InuYasha growled. Shippo sighed. "Just go back, apologize, and bring Kagome back. We all know you miss her!"

InuYasha stopped pacing long enough to throw a punch at the kit's head. "I won't go and apologize like some week human! It was her fault anyway."

Miroku stepped up beside the irate hanyou. "Actually, it was quite obviously your fault. You should go and apologize at least so we can get started on the search for the Jewel shards again."

Sango nodded from her position on the other side of the well. InuYasha 'Keh'ed' and said, "Fine. If you all want her back so bad, I'll go get her."

Jumping over the side of the well, InuYasha disappeared from sight. Miroku slumped his shoulders with relief. "Finally! I was worried that he was going to wait for another three days before going to get her."

Smiling, Sango walked around to Miroku. "I'm just glad that Kagome will be back with us soon. Although, I hope she hasn't completely forgiven him yet, the jerk!"

Laughing Miroku turned and started the walk back to the village. "Let's go see if Kaedae has any stew left. I'm starving!"


InuYasha landed on the hard ground of the present day well, but stopped his jump when he noticed that the well house was darker than usual. "Hmm, that's weird. I don't think that the well should be this dark."

Although it was noticeably darker, InuYasha had no trouble seeing. His hanyou eyes adapted well to the dark and he could see that the well was covered. Narrowing his eyes, he growled and bent his knees, readying himself to jump.

Banging against the top of the well, he fell back to the ground. Feeling the time slip pull him back through, he jumped out of the well in the Feudal Era. "Dammit!"

Growling to himself, InuYasha leaped over the side of the well and felt the damp ground in Kagome's time. Looking up, InuYasha noticed the covering over the well. "She must really be mad at me if she blocked up the well."

Contrary to popular belief, InuYasha actually learns from most of his mistakes. Instead of jumping out of the well, he tried climbing. Once he reached the top, he braced one leg on the south side of the well and the other on the north side of the well. He placed both hands on the cover and pushed. The cover flew off with a large boom. Dust billowed up from the place where the lid landed, covering the entire room.

InuYasha stomped out of the well, intent on finding Kagome. He leaped up to Kagome's window and looked inside. What he saw pulled on his heartstrings. Kagome's entire room was bare, not a thing left inside. He didn't see her bed with her pink comforter that smelled so much like her. He didn't see her desk, littered with forgotten homework.

Swallowing hard, InuYasha went to the kitchen, jumping down from Kagome's window and going in through the front door. The rest of the house was in the same state as Kagome's room. He walked over to the ice box where Kagome's family kept all the food and looked inside. It was completely empty except for one box of Ramen. Attached to the box of noodles was a note, written in elegant script.

Picking up the note, he sniffed it. It smelled of Mrs. Higurashi. Turning it over, InuYasha read what she had written.

InuYasha,

I know you must be very confused by this point. I left this note

for you because I feel that you do care about my daughter. We

have moved to Osaka, a city many miles away. I made a tough

decision as a mother to take Kagome away from the well and

the quest for the Sacred Jewel. I do not believe that she is that

important and I will not have her endangering her life anymore.

If you love her, come get her. If you want to see her every time

you wake up, every morning, then come say that to her face.

She loves you, so much that it hurts me to see her come back

time after time so heartbroken. You need to make your decision.

Finish the quest with her or without.

I did not want to do this. But I could not deal with the hurt that

my daughter has been suffering because of you.

Kaiyo Higurashi

InuYasha couldn't believe it. He reread the note, hoping that he was imagining it. With wide eyes, he sank slowly to the floor. "She's… gone."

Grabbing the pack of Ramen, he left the Higurashi household and made his way back to the well. He felt displaced from his body, like he was watching what he was doing through someone else's eyes. Jumping back through the well, he started to walk. He was surprised to look up and see that he made it back to Kaedae's hut in a manner of minutes.

Miroku stepped out of the hut, jumping a bit when he saw InuYasha. "So how did it go, my friend?" Looking around the hanyou, he frowned. "Where is Lady Kagome? Didn't she come back with you?"

InuYasha shook his head. Not trusting himself to speak, he withdrew the note from his haori and shoved it at the monk while he went inside the hut. He couldn't make himself read it again. Sitting with his back resting against the wall, he gathered Tessusaiga to him and stared at the wall in front of him.

Shippo, surprised at the spacey hanyou, went over and hit him on the head. When InuYasha didn't react like he usually did, with curses and violence, Shippo shivered and walked over to Sango.

Miroku came in a moment later, the note in his hand. Sitting heavily next to Sango, he handed the note off. Once she had finished reading it, her eyes were wide and filled with unshed tears. Looking up at InuYasha, she threw a rock at his head.

When InuYasha looked over toward her, she said, "Well, what are you waiting for? Go get her."

InuYasha continued to look blankly at her. She sighed, annoyed at the fact that he was so dense that she had to explain. "We all know you love her and it says here that she loves you, although we could have told you that months before. So what is stopping you from going to get her?"

Raising a clawed hand, he pointed at the note. "Didn't you read all of it? She goes back to her time heartbroken because of me. I cause her too much pain. She deserves better than me and where she is, she will finally get it."

Standing, he looked at his friends. "Let me know if you hear any shard rumors." And with that, he walked out of the hut. Sango looked over at Miroku.

"We can't let him do this. He has to go get her. You know it as well as I do."

Miroku nodded. "I know that. He needs to learn for himself that he can't live without her." Sighing he added, "I just hope he learns quicker than we give him credit for."

To Be Continued. . .